30 - thecbm.co.uk · eu fastener trade figures for 2012 ... essentially, may’s figures showed the...

C o n f e d e r a t i o n o f B r i t i s h M e t a l f o r m i n g

30

30

ISSUE

2013£7.50

ISSN 1759-5975

FORGING

SHEET METAL

FASTENERS

EU fastener trade figures for 2012

Stokes Forgings saving £2000 per month on a

single hot forging press

Innovative forming solutions for the aerospace industry

11

12

20

Take the time to talk - and listenIt’s a helter-skelter world we live in now. I sit here at my PC keyboard, with the corporate Blackberry squawking at one side of my desk, and my iPhone - briefly silent, thank goodness - at the other.Of course, we all believe that 24/7 access to each other means we communicate better than ever, but I do wonder if that’s true.

Take the latest manufacturing data, for example.

Essentially, May’s figures showed the US and China down, and the UK up, which was very heartening for me, as it suggests that our industrial sector is continuing steadily along the path to recovery.

Yet, when I watched TV, the focus was the impact of the negative data on the equity markets. Easily done, but certainly not the full story.

It was the same with the latest bank figures, especially the government’s Funding for Lending scheme. Understandably, the raw data made the head-lines, but no-one addressed the question which, for me, lies at the heart of the debate.

Are the banks refusing to lend, or have SMEs become so disillusioned at having their funding applications rejected, that they have given up trying?

Instead of analysing the fundamentals of the FfL scheme - which would have taken time and effort – people simply bashed the government for its perceived failings.

I just wish everyone could pause for thought, stop and look over the para-pet, because there is a lot of positive stuff out there.

Our Technology Transfer Group has just had a wonderful visit to Rolls-Royce’s Apprentice Academy in Derby, which is the benchmark for how such ventures should operate, and a fantastic resource for the Midlands and the UK. Even JCB sends apprentices there, which is a real tribute.

Encouraging young people into our industry is our biggest challenge, and at Hadley Group, we regularly use our apprentices to talk to school-leavers and students as they speak the same language.

Rolls-Royce has adopted the same approach because individuals of like mind relate best to each other, and achieving success is all about communication.

I’m not suggesting we should all sit here until midnight, tweeting away, but we do need to communicate better, and the best way is to ensure that our language is always right for its audience.

If we don’t have the right message, and it isn’t couched in the correct way, then no-one will be listening, and all our time and effort has been wasted.

Barry YeomansCBM President

www.britishmetalforming.com 1

THE PRESIDENT’S REVIEW

CBM STAFF

PresidentBarry Yeomans president@@britishmetalforming.com

Operations DirectorGeraldine Bolton MCMI, Dip.OCR, MAAT, M.IIM [email protected]

Energy & Forging Sector SpecialistDr Ken Campbell F.Inst.F.T [email protected]

Sheet Metal, Cold Rolled & Fastener SpecialistAdrian Nicklin ISME [email protected]

AccountsChris Smith MAAT [email protected]

Administrator Debbie York [email protected]

AdministratorLouise Campbell [email protected]

Marketing & Communications ManagerKirsi Lintula BA(Hons), LBIPP [email protected]

Sales & Marketing AssistantRohima Begum BSc(Hons) [email protected]

ReceptionistJan Taylor [email protected]

Confederation of British Metalforming 0121 601 6350www.britishmetalforming.com

METAL MATTERSISSUE 30ONLINE NOW!for the latest

news, events & features.

DIARY DATES•CBMTechn

ologyTransfer

Group Meeting

9 July

•CBMExecutiveBoardM

eeting

10 September

• TheCBMH

,S&EGroup

meet quarterly to discuss

relevantH&S

issues

17 September

•CBMtwodaycourse:

Metallurgy for

Non Metallurgists

23 September

The Metallurgy for Non-

Metallurgists programme is

a two day course designed

for anyone who needs to

know more about metals

and processes used in

their company.

www.britishmetalforming.com2

CBM MEMBERSHIP/DIARY DATES

CBM

MEMB

ERSH

IP…

• REBATES on your Climate Change Levy• FREE employment law helpline• Monthly market reports• FREE technical helpline

• Health and safety officer service• FREE publications• And many more….

Contact CBM now for a

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METAL MATTERS

TO BE PART OF THE WIDER PICTURE AND BE MASTERS OF YOUR OWN IDENTITY… CONTACT CBM NOW!

t: 0121 601 6350 • e: [email protected] • www.britishmetalforming.com Confederation of British Metalforming • National Metalforming Centre • 47 Birmingham Road • West Bromwich•West Midlands B70 6PY

WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBERS•DSLLtd(StrideSuppliesLtdDiv.) www.designcrews.com•Eden(Suffolk-MarmonGroupLtdDiv.) www.eden-industries.co.uk•Eden(Glamorgan-MarmonGroupLtdDiv.) www.eden-industries.co.uk•Stockfield Metal Spinners Ltd www.stockfield.com•Refmet Ceramics Ltd www.refmet.com

CBM members provide high quality components to key industry sectors; indeed virtually every manufacturing sector buys components from a CBM member company.

Working with members, and the UK government CBM creates a world class metalforming supply base for UK manufacturing.

Maintaining close links with UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), Transport and the Regions, and the Health & Safety Executive,CBM ensures that the members’ interests are represented in the consultative processes which precede legislative or regulatory initiatives.

Membership of the CBM includes a wide and growing range of free and discounted services, designed to save you money and help your business operate more efficiently:

•CBMForgingSectorMeeting

09 October Forging Sector meetings provide

members and associates with the

opportunity to meet and talk to

senior managers and directors

from other similar manufacturing

companies, and at the same time

receive presentations on topics of

current interest.

For further information or tobookaplacepleasevisit:

www.britishmetalforming.com/events.aspx

•AdvancedEnginee

ringUK

2013 12-13No

vember

NEC, Birmingham.

•CBMtwodaycourse:Metallurgy for Non Metallurgists 25November The Metallurgy for Non-Metallurgists programme is a two day course designed for anyone who needs to know more about metals and processes used in their company.

•CBMExecutiveBoard

Meeting

12 December

•MACH2014

07April2014

MACH 2014 will take place

7-11 April 2014.

• InternationalConference onNewDevelopmentsinSheet Metal Forming 13May2014• InternationalConference onNewDevelopmentsinForgingTechnology 2 May 2015

• The21stInternational Forging Congress 29June2014


CONTENTS

Presidents Review1: Take the time to talk1: CBM Staff

CBM Membership/Diary Dates2: CBM Membership What’s in it for you?2: New Members2: Diary Dates

CBM News3: CBM Update4: Report on the Technology Transfer Group (TTG) Meeting held on 31st May 2013 at the premises of Rolls-Royce plc

CBM Events7: CBM two day course: Metallurgy for Non Metallurgists

Energy9: Climate Change Levy (CCL): Changes to your discount 9: Why it’s smart to plan your next energy contract now!

Health & Safety10: REACH Substances of Very High Concern - Update, June 2013

Fasteners10: Gesipa Blind Riveting Systems Ltd: Riveting solutions for tight application spaces 11: EU fastener trade figures for 2012

Forging12: Stokes Forgings saving £2000 per month on a single hot forging press

Sheet Metal15: Company profile: QCI spans the globe from Staffordshire HQ16: Measuring the Oil Film Layer and Determining its Distribution on a Coil or Sheet Surface

20: Innovative forming solutions for the aerospace industry

Business Support21: Huge R&D tax reclaim for Wolverhampton Landmine Company 22: Access to finance24: Developing an internal health and safety audit programme24: Assessing the effectiveness of in-house training

25: Business Support Guide25: Funding for innovation: Smart – Round 2

Insurance27: Credit Insurance: Helping you to do business

Membership Directory28: Fastener Manufacturer Members28: Forging Manufacturer Members29: Sheet Metal Manufacturer Members30: Cold Rolled Manufacturer Members31: Fastener Supplier Members31: Forging Supplier Members31: Sheet Metal Supplier Members32: Commercial Supplier Members32: Overseas Supplier Members

Contentsissue 30

Confederation of British MetalformingNational Metalforming Centre, 47 Birmingham Road, West Bromwich, West Midlands B70 6PY.

Telephone: 0121 601 6350Enquiries: Kirsi Lintula, Marketing & Communications ManagerEmail: [email protected]: Rohima Begum, Sales and Marketing AssistantEmail: [email protected]: www.britishmetalforming.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanicalincluding photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without the express prior written consentof the Publisher. ISSN 1759-5975 Metal Matters Magazine is published by The Confederation of British MetalformingEvery effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of material published in this magazine. The Confederationof British Metalforming and its agents do not accept any responsibility for the views or claims made by contributors in theadvertising or editorial content.

©TheConfederationofBritishMetalforming2013


CBM NEWS

Following the successful launch of the partnership between CBM and the Advanced Forming Re-search Centre (AFRC), no time has been wasted on the develop-ment of a CBM member engage-ment pack for communication of AFRC capabilities and the nature of collaboration between AFRC and CBM members. An outline framework of the pack has been developed and will be progressed at a meeting on 18 June. Plans are also in hand to hold a CBM members day at the AFRC,

possibly in September. Potentially the event will be an afternoon event culminating in dinner. The event will consist of an intro-duction to AFRC, facility tour, breakout sessions, a summary of the engagement pack and an industry road mapping session. When we have a date for the visit I will be looking at some group air travel. I hope to let you have the date for the members’ day during the next month so that you can get it in your diary. We are also working with AFRC to develop an industry roadmap, which Adrian Bailey MP has requested from CBM. It is therefore important that a roadmap is developed which makes a clear case for action on the part of UK Government and this will require some preparation and thought. Members will be asked to contribute to this exercise during the members’ day at AFRC in the autumn. I am delighted to inform you that CBM have submitted a supply chain project bid through the Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative (AMSCI). The CBM is leading a consortium of OEMs, SMEs and equipment manufacturers backed by the Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) and Tata Steel. The objective is to apply nov-el forming technologies with existing production equipment to produce components required in today’s and tomorrow’s high added value mar-kets. The technologies involved will predominantly be either incremental

cbm update

or high-strain rate forming processes that are capable of forming high-strength or difficult to form alloys and will allow UK companies the opportu-nity to trial the technologies prior to making investments. The improvement in material utilisation and reduction in final machining costs would mean the UK companies involved will gain significant cost advantage over low cost manufacturing sources. The total project bid is £27m of which a grant of £13.5m has been sought. CBM continues its metals sector collaboration through its membership of the Metals Forum group (see picture). The group, made up of 12 metals trade associations, meets 4 times per year. The meetings are also attended by representatives from the Department for Business, Innovations and Skills (BIS) and SEMTA. The group which met at the beginning of June contin-ued a watching brief of the Metals Forum Health & Safety Group, who are looking at a co-ordinated approach to collating and benchmarking accident statistics for the industry. With regards to skills in the metalforming indus-try, the group felt that manufacturing friendly topics are not as clearly part of the school curriculum as they would like them to be. As a consequence of this Metals Forum have agreed to write to all professional institutions and relevant leading organisations e.g. EEF and CBI, to find out their views and what they are doing to tackle this. During the state of trade discussions access to finance appears to be raising its head again, with this in mind a useful ‘Access to Finance’ sheet has been prepared which can be viewed on pages 22 - 23 of Metal Matters.CBM’s new climate change agreements are now up and running; the agreements annually generate £3.4m of climate change levy discount for members. We have a short window of opportunity to make any corrections to base year data, but after September 2013 a penalty will be applied by the Environment Agency, so please take time to audit your data for accuracy. I continue to carry out my visitstomembercompanies; I have made a total of 29 visits so far this year, and I would like to remind you that you do not have to wait for me to come and see you if you have something to tell me about, I would be delighted to receive an invitation from you! If you have a good news story about your business that you would like to share please let me know so that it can be published in this magazine. Thank you once again for your on-going support.

Geraldine BoltonOperations Director

•TheMetalsForumgroup


CBM NEWS

Despite the holiday shut down week a number of CBM members made it to Derby for early morning coffee

and bacon buns.Dr. Steven Halliday of R-R and the R-R person in residence at the AFRC welcomed guests.

In his review of the activities taking place since the previous meeting at Hadley Group on 19th February, Peter Standring asked Geraldine Bolton to appraise those present of the £27 million CBM Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative Proposal which had been submitted and accepted two days earlier. This four year project Geraldine said, was to form seven working groups, consisting of major OEM’s/T1 custom-ers of metalformed products and process users, to purchase current special purpose equipment (most of it currently un-available for use in the UK) and to develop high added value parts and hence to establish new supply chains. This, it is believed, will provide UK metalformers with a golden oppor-tunity to acquire 21st century skills which could be used to create and develop an international presence in the market for high added value metalformed products.

Peter Standring reminded members that the R-R TTG event was to be a joint activity carried out with the launch of the newly formed CBM Incremental Deformation Processes (IDP) Sub Group.

This body, to be Chaired by Steven Halliday, was timely since it would be addressing, on an entirely non competitive basis, most of the processes associated with the AMSCI project. Steven then informed those present of his Aims and Objec-tives for the outcomes he expected the Group would deliver and how this was to be achieved. Please find attached Ste-ven’s report on the IDP Launch.

In considering the subject of the TTG meeting, “What are the skills and experiences necessary for our workforces (current and future) in order to support the most effective exploitation of Incremental Metal Forming Processes?”, Steven introduced the ‘nearness to readiness for production’ as borrowed from NASA. This identified the numbers 1 to 4 as being the ‘Technology Assessment and Proving’ phase of a project. The numbers 5 to 7 would indicate the ‘Pre-Pro-duction’ phase – similar to the AMSCI project and the 8 to 9, the ‘Production Implementation.’ Typically, AFRC activity would cross over levels 3-6 of this technology development scale (known internally within Rolls Royce as the Manufac-

turing Capability Readiness Levels). Copies of presentation available from CBM.

The importance here was the need to identify what level of skills and training those who would be employed in pushing IDP’ing forward might require and where and from whom they might obtain it. Again, this information which Steven collected from the discussions is attached.

In Any Other Business, it was suggested that now the TTG had run for one year and had held five meetings, it had yet to achieve true Technology Transfer by working on a common problem shared by a number of CBM members.

The Chairman suggested that sub groups exist to serve the members’ interests and it was for members to generate issues which they wanted the TTG to investigate. However, the point was well made and would be circulated again to all members to encourage a positive response.

Geraldine also raised the important matter of further devel-oping the AMSCI Process Groups in the period before the outcome of the bid is known.

Two major issues need to be worked on. One being the for-malisation of the cross sectorial OEM’s/T1’s which would be joining the project. The second was establishing those CBM member companies which wanted to be associated with the seven groups (this was not exclusive, for example, Tata Steel and R-R will be joining all seven groups).

The visit included a conducted tour of the £11m R-R Apprentice Training facilities. These truly were uplifting seeing 474 featured apprentices (many female) in the wall mounted montage for the 2012/13 year. They don’t have drop-outs, the retainment figure was over 98% which gives an indication that the format used is spot on.

Our grateful thanks to Steven Halliday for organising a wonderful event and to R-R for hosting it. The next event will be at W. H. Tildesley on 9 July.

For further information please contact Geraldine Bolton on 0121 601 6350

or email [email protected].

Report on the Technology Transfer Group (TTG) Meeting held on 31st May 2013 at the premises of Rolls-Royce plc


CBM EVENTS

METALLURGY FOR NON-METALLURGISTS

23rd & 24th September 2013 25th & 26th November 2013 at the National Metalforming Centre, West Bromwich, West Midlands B70 6PYThe Metallurgy for Non-Metallurgists pro-gramme is a two day course designed for anyone who needs to know more about metals and processes used in their company.Outline of course contents

•Metalproperties•Metalsstructure•Oresmelting•Metalsmaking&casting•Rollingandmetalforming•MechanicalTestingandNDT•Hot&coldworking/shaping/forming•Heattreatment•Metalalloyclassification•Corrosion.

Business benefitsThe Metallurgy for Non-Metallurgists programme will enable participants to:

•Metalproperties•Metalsstructure•Oresmelting•Metals.

Programme contentCourses commence with delivery of core know-ledge components and progress onto a series of extended knowledge modules.

ProgrammedeliveryCourses take the form of participative workshops, led by an expert metallurgist with extensive metals industry experience. The content, length and structure of the course can vary according to individual company needs. A folder of course materials is supplied and all attendees will receive a certificate after completing the two day course.

Cost:CBMmembers: £300 + vat per person NonMembers: £400 + vat per personPlacesarelimited-tobookaplacepleaseemailKirsiLintulaattheCBM:[email protected]


ENERGY

For every company that is in a Climate Change Agreement (CCA), there is a requirement for the company to submit new supplier certificates (PP11) and supporting analysis declaration (PP10) with effect from 1 April 2013. Specifically, the requirement is to amend the relief formula to increase the amount of discount that can be claimed by businesses in a CCA for ELECTRICITY from 65% up to 90%. In any event you should also re-sub-mit for gas which is still at 65% but the forms have changed so new ones are required to confirm you are in the new climate change agreements and the new Target Unit Identifier number.We recommend that you complete the forms as soon as possible using your latest 12 months data. The CBM are offering a service to complete the forms for you for a nominal adminis-tration cost of £50 per site for which an invoice will be raised. When the forms are completed they will be emailed to you to sign and send to your energy suppliers and HM Revenue & Customs.

For more information, please contact, Geraldine Bolton. email: [email protected].

Do you usually leave your energy contract renewals until the last minute? ENER-G offers three key reasons why you should be ensuring they are top of mind well before their renewal is due.

1.TakeadvantageofdipsinthewholesalemarketThe wholesale energy market is volatile, presenting opportuni-ties to buy when prices dip, but equally a substantial risk of pay-ing a premium during a peak. Therefore, the timing of placing your next energy contract could make a difference of £1000’s.

You can secure your next energy contract well before the termi-nation of your existing one. Ensure you are closely monitoring the wholesale market at least nine months before your contracts are due for renewal so you can identify the most opportune times to buy.

2.AvoidexpensiveoutofcontracttariffsIf you fail to renew your existing energy contract you can eas-ily find your business locked into over-inflated ‘out-of-contract’ tariffs for as long as 12 months, paying more than 50% above current rates.

Sign up to a contract renewal reminder service, such as the one provided by ENER-G, to provide ample time to research the market and find the most competitive contract.

3.TaketimetoensureyourcontractisrightforyourbusinessEnsure you thoroughly check your supplier contract terms and conditions for clauses that give them the ability to ‘pass-through’ new market charges during your contract. In addition, spend time researching all the contract options and understanding the difference between a fixed, flexible or a collective product. One approach will be more suitable than another depending on your attitude to risk, budgetary requirements and internal plans for efficiency improvements.

For further advice or information call 01527 855072 or email [email protected] quoting ‘CBM’.

Climate Change Levy (CCL): Changes to your discountACT NOW TO AVOID LOSING YOUR REBATE!

Whyit’ssmarttoplanyournextenergycontractnow!


HEALTH & SAFETY

Riveting solutions for tight application spaces For situations where there is not enough room available to operate standard rivet setting tools, GESIPA® designed its angular heads which can be freely fixed anywhere along its TAURUS® tensile axis, providing additional room for working in difficult to access areas.Angular heads designed by GESIPA® can be especially used in tight application spaces where minimum possible edge clearance is not more than 12 mm with a total head length of only 90 mm. The robust design of the angular heads allows users to apply setting forces of up to 20 KN when fitting blind rivets. This angular head can be freely fixed anywhere (360° free rotation) along the TAURUS® tensile axis, providing additional room for working in areas with very limited working space. GESIPA® designed two versions of the angular head where both the versions, angular head 90° compact for TAURUS® 1 and 2 and the angular head 90° TAURUS® 1-4, are characterized by compact and robust design with simple jaw maintenance, if need arises.

www.gesipa.co.uk

CandidateListforSVHCsThe Candidate List still contains 138 chemicals, which is the same as December 2012. However, in March ten new substances were proposed for the Candidate list, eight by Germany, two by Sweden and one by Poland. Eight of these are organic chemicals, but Sweden has proposed cadmium and cadmium oxide. While most of manufacturing industry has eliminated cadmium and found suitable alternatives, there is a large quantity still used in the aerospace industry, primarily as electroplated finishes. Cadmium coatings are used for the corrosion protection of alloy steel fasteners and other steel components, and are present in most commercial aircraft designed and specified before about 2008. The reason that the aerospace industry continued to use cadmium is that their requirements are safety critical and no substitute could be found that fulfilled all of the functions of cadmium in fasteners in particular.The consultation period for the proposed new chemicals ended at the end of April, and as of mid-June, they have not been added to the candidate list. However it is worth a reminder of the legal obligations that companies have when a substance that is part of a finished article that they produce and sell is included in the Candidate List.If a company sells an article that contains more than 0.1% in weight of a substance on the Candidate List, the supplier must provide sufficient information to allow the safe use of the article to its customers or to a consumer of the article within 45 days of their request. Companies that make components with an electroplated cadmium coating will probably

REACHSUBSTANCESOFVERYHIGH

CONCERN

UPDATEhave less than 0.1% weight of cadmium, but it is certainly worth confirming that so that their legal obligations are known.More importantly, EU producers and importers of articles that contain more than 0.1% of a substance on the Candidate List, and is supplied inquantitiesofover1tonneperyearperproducerorimportermustnotifyECHAwithinsixmonths of the substance being included on the Candidate List. Again it is recommended that companies selling cadmium plated components make a calculation in advance to determine whether they will have this obligation to inform ECHA if cadmium is included in the Candidate List.AnnexXIV,AuthorisationListforSVHCsThere are now twenty two substances included in Annex XIV, eight more having been added in April. The latest additions include seven chromium VI substances, and trichloroethylene. Again there are implications here for the aerospace industry. Sunset dates for these eight are in September 2017 except for trichloroethylene which is April 2016. Latest application date for authorisation is March 2016 except for trichloroethylene which is October 2014. The full list can be seen on the ECHA website.Many of these chromium compounds are widely used for surface treatment, and the advice from HSE to any company that uses the substances is that they ask their supplier whether they intend to apply for authorisation for continued use. Note that authorisation is not required in order to supply the articles that have been surface treated with chrome VI substances. Further information on this can be given on request.In addition in January, ten more substances were prioritised for inclusion in Annex XIV, including strontium chromate, which used to be widely used as a corrosion inhibitor.

FASTENERS

JUNE2013


FASTENERS

2012EU fastener trade figures for

Fastener import and export data for 2012 from the Eurostat database again shows that the biggest EU fastener user and manufacturer nation was Germany, followed by Italy and France. Italy is the only European nation that exported more than it imported, and only Germany and Italy manufactured more than their domestic demand.

All figures in thousands of tonnes 2012 France Germany Italy Poland Spain UK Total Total EUNational production 220 875 583 131 118 83 2,046 2,121National imports 293 718 170 177 169 248 1,775 2,993Imports from Asia ** 33 150 63 42 36 83 407 591Imports from China 19 59 34 29 19 35 196 302National Exports 152 706 384 69 82 58 1,452 2,022Domestic Demand 373 838 464 217 205 273 2,370 3,092

** India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, China, South Korea and Japan

The nations listed above are the trade association members of EIFI, the European Industrial Fastener Institute. EIFI has been recording trade data in this way since 2006. For the figures above, national production data had to be estimated for all nations except Germany and Italy, and it was taken to be the same as 2011. This is because of the delay in obtaining national production data from Eurostat. The trade data refers to the total of all of the CN 7318 codes, which are the fastener codes for steel and stainless steel products. The data shows a significant reduction in market demand in 2012 across the main fastener producing nations in Europe. According to the figures, the UK was the exception to this. The table below compares 2012 figures against 2011. For every nation, the reduction in market demand was accompanied by a bigger reduction in imports.

France Germany Italy Poland Spain UK TotalMarket Demand - 6% - 5% - 15% - 9% - 10% - 1% - 7%Total imports - 7% - 10% - 24% - 14% - 11% - 4% - 11%Exports 0% - 1% - 2% - 8% + 3% - 11% - 2%

Eurostat collects trade and manufacturing data from all 27 European nations, and the database is available to the general public, so that the trends for individual product commodities and types can be extracted separately.

The database is accessed via http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/eurostat/home/


FORGING

Stokes Forgings saving £2000 per month on a single hot forging press

A new automatic die lubrication system manufactured by Spraying Systems Co. is enabling Stokes Forgings, the largest automotive forging company in the UK, to

quadruple productivity in relation to consumption of graphite lubricant on an ongoing contract for the manufacture of vehicle wheel hubs.

A Eumuco 2000 tonne forging press is the first of seven presses at the company’s Dudley, West Midlands plant to be equipped with the modular AutoJet Lubrication System, designed and manufactured by spray technology specialist Spraying Systems Co. Results have been so positive that Stokes has put in hand a progressive plan to convert all its presses to the new system.

In the hot forging of metal components there is general agreement that the die lubricant used, and the manner of its delivery, can critically affect the quality and consistency of the forgings emerging from the press. Graphite-based suspensions, such as graphite-in-water, are still the lubricants most widely used in hot forging. They are not cheap - material cost can be a significant factor on long runs – and inefficient transfer of the lubricant to the die not only wastes lubricant but can also create other costs.

Stokes Forgings was not new to spray application of die lubricant. The company had previously tried using spray nozzles for the task but was discouraged by interruption of flow through nozzle blocking, as well as by poor atomisation. At the time Stokes discovered AutoJet systems on the Spraying Systems stand at MACH 12, the forging plant was using compressed air to propel die lubricant via open-ended pipe – maintaining flow, but at the cost of over-lubrication and some ‘splashing’.

In the modular automatic lubricating system now serving the Eumuco press, electronic controls, lubricant pump, air and liquid valving are housed externally in two cabinets alongside the drum in which the graphite suspension is mixed. At the press, 4 air-atomising nozzles mounted on a shuttling feeder carrier deliver brief shots of finely atomised spray directed consecutively at upper and lower mould sections to give even surface coverage. An automatic cleanout needle incorporated in each nozzle operates after every shot to keep the orifice clear of blockage.

Movements and operation of all spray elements are pro-grammed to synchronise with those of the press.

With the exception of the mixer drum and the feeder carrier (both supplied by Stokes) all major system components were included in the AutoJet specification.

“Since installing the new system,” says the company’s maintenance team leader, “estimated expenditure on graph-ite for the press is substantially lower. For every £700 spent on graphite we produced some 8,500 wheel hubs. For the same expenditure we now make 34,000 hubs.

“On graphite alone, estimated savings are in the region of £2000 each month, and there are other benefits. We have been able to reduce the concentration of graphite in the

continued on page 13 .....>

LESS GRAPHITE– more consistent product


FORGING

<..... continued from page 12 suspension, while improving product consistency. Under the previous lubrication system, a percentage of the wheel hubs needed hand finishing (a linishing operation). That work has been virtually eliminated.”

Stokes Forgings is part of Mahindra Forgings – a member of a US $16.2 billion company: the Mumbai-based Mahindra Group.

The wheel hubs and other forged components made at Dudley are supplied to vehicle manufacturers world-wide, including Britain, Continental Europe and China.

For further information please contact Adam Mulvaney

email: [email protected]


SHEET METAL

QCI spans the globe from Staffordshire HQGlobalisation is often seen as an unstoppable force which batters British companies into submission, so it’s refreshing to meet an SME from these shores which is using the concept to its advantage.

The QCI Group has achieved preferred supplier status with blue-chip brands in aerospace, defence, power generation and rail, and taken on crucial roles in their international supply chains.Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, Bombardier Transportation and GE Energy are among the corporates which have chosen this Staffordshire-based business to handle their quality control, logistics, project management and product sequencing requirements.“We process 2.2 million aircraft seats just for Trelleborg each year, and inspect and vet all the goods which go into Bombardier’s manufacturing plant in Derby,” says QCI’s founder and CEO, Dave Munday, with understandable pride.Equally impressive is the geographical spread of QCI’s interests. Four warehouses in the West Midlands focus on work for its key sectors - oil and gas, power generation, aerospace and defence, and automotive - and it operates others in Scotland and Sunderland.Meeting the needs of its global customer base also requires offices in China, France, India and Singapore, and QCI is currently setting up two warehouses in the former country, one of which will supply customers across Asia, and even into Australia.The bulk of the group’s revenue - a healthy £2.5m in the last financial year - comes from such supply chain activities, although it does also have a machine tool shop in Aldridge, catering for clients who need special purpose machines and tooling.The QCI story makes impressive reading. Even more so given that the business is funded from internal sources, employs every one of its 72 staff directly, and that Dave confidently expects the new interests in China to boost turnover by some 40% in the coming year.He established the business a decade ago, after acquiring significant experience in quality management and the engineering sector, then moved the fast-growing venture to Norton Canes in August 2011.“It might not be the most obvious place, but it’s a great location for us. Our HQ is right on the M6 Toll, and it’s just a few minutes walk to our major warehouses,” says Dave.“We’ve already got two managers lined up for China, so those centres will open later this year, and we’re in the right sectors for long-term growth, because about 50% of business currently comes from aerospace and between 20% and 25% from rail.“No-one can ever afford to be complacent, but everything is going very well, and we’re all working very hard to make sure that the success continues.”

www.qci-group.com

company profile


SHEET METAL

Although the methods of production and materials used in the coil processing and body-in-white stamping industries have changed over the years, one thing that hasn’t is the role that the oil film plays on the surface of a coil or sheet.

Utilised as a coolant and lubricant in the rolling process, acting as an anti-corrosion barrier during storage and providing a critical lubricating layer in the stamping process, oil plays a vital role at each and every stage of the body-in-white and coil rolling processes.

Not only is oil an expensive necessity, but one that needs to be carefully controlled to ensure it remains within a tightly controlled thickness and distribution, particularly in the BIW stamping process.

Coils with insufficient oil can lead to:

• Difficulties in the forming process• Defect stampings• Increased tool wear• Unnecessary stoppage and lost production.

At the opposite end of the scale, coils with excessive oil deposits can lead to:

• Downstream production problems• Panel welding and adhesion issues• Painting and lacquering difficulties • Degreasing and environmental impacts

To further add to the importance placed upon the lubricating layer, the continuous drive for lighter vehicle assemblies calls for a greater use of thinner steels with higher yield strengths. Whereas this may seem like an ideal solution, the downside is that such materials pose a demanding challenge to the stamping process due to their reduced forming properties when compared to the more traditional steels previously used.

Likewise, the wider use of aluminium sheets can offer substantial weight savings to the BIW market, albeit at a significant increase in costs. However, total elongation, or the amount of stretch before fracture, is usually much lower for aluminium than it is for steel (approximately 20% for aluminium versus 50% for steel) making aluminium a more difficult material to form in the stamping operation. Furthermore, the different joining techniques used

on aluminium bodies requires careful control in order to avoid excessive oil deposits.

With increasing pressures to use smaller quantities of oil and a need to control the oil film thickness to a precise weight per square metre, how do you measure the lubrication thickness? And equally as important, how do you determine its distribution across the complete coil or sheet surface?

In practice, oiling is achieved by means of determining the speed of the strip, its width and then by controlling the oil pump flow to achieve the desired thickness of lubricant. However, with oil film thicknesses in the region of a mere 2 g/m², determining whether oiling has successfully formed a homogenous lubricating layer is not only a difficult challenge, but one that has also become of significant importance.

Current methods of measuring the oil film layer are usually conducted on a sporadic basis and generally confined to laboratory testing only. Furthermore, the time involved to conduct the test, then act upon the results, can often be a case of too little too late, with the distinct possibility that the material may have already been put into production.

Over the years, two measuring principles have been used to determine the thickness of the lubrication layer. The first being the Beta Backscatter radiation method and the second (and more common of the two) the gravimetric analysis procedure.

Utilising the Beta Backscatter Radiation procedure, the coil is charged with a weak emission of radiation, in which the radiation that is reflected by the substrate is measured. After initial calibration, it is possible to determine the lubrication thickness by

“How do you determine its distribution across the complete coil

or sheet surface?

Measuring the Oil Film Layer and Determining its Distribution on a Coil or Sheet Surface



SHEET METAL

the degree of backscatter dampening caused by the oil film layer. It is worth noting that this procedure does not provide an absolute measurement but merely a comparative value using previously calibrated strip samples. Such a method is not without its difficulties and requires strict health and safety controls and monitoring, thus making it difficult to use as an industrial tool.

The more common procedure of the two has been the gravimetric analysis method. Gravimetric testing requires postcard sized samples to be taken from the coil and sent to the laboratory where they are precisely weighed to a fraction of a gramme. They are subsequently cleaned to remove all traces of oil and thereafter reweighed.

A simple calculation of the difference in weight divided by the surface area enables the amount of oil per square meter to be estimated. The imperative word in this instance is 'estimated' due to the fact this method has no way of determining the distribution of oil in any manner whatsoever.

Was there more oil on one side of the sample than the other? Was it evenly distributed, or was it just a case of there being one large droplet in a selected area?

Gravimetric measurements are unable to determine the distribution of lubricant, but merely the difference in weight before and after cleansing.

Fig. 1 shows acute light absorbance by the oil film layer of wavelengths between 3.2–3.5 µm.

“Gravimetric measurements merely determine the difference in weight

before and after cleansing.

0

20

40

60

100

350034003300320031003000

Wavelength (nm)

80

Oil AOil B

3600 3700

Oil C

Ligh

t abs

orba

nce

(%)

Fig. 2 shows the design principle of a measurement system using infrared photometry.

And of course, testing such a small sample piece is by no means truly representative of the complete coil surface.

A third and revolutionary method of measuring the lubrication layer has recently been developed by Amepa GmbH using a technology based on a principle known as Lambert Beers Law, which states that the thickness of lubricant is directly proportional to the amount of light it absorbs.

Utilising infrared spectroscopy, the Amepa Oil Film Measurement (OFM) technology directs a source of infrared light through the lubricating layer. As the light passes through the film of oil, wavelengths of light between 3.2 and 3.5 µm are intensely absorbed by the lubricant layer (as shown in Fig. 1) irrespective of the grade of oil or its viscosity. The remaining light that is reflected from the surface of the strip is collected by an optical detector, making it possible to determine the thickness of lubricant to a very high degree of accuracy (as shown in Fig. 2).

Already adopted as a working tool by several leading automotive BIW pressing facilities and coil and strip producers alike, the Amepa OFM is an in-line tool that instantly measures the lubrication thickness in the range of 0.1–5.0 g/m² to an accuracy of 0.1 g/m². The technology is pre-calibrated for a wide range of industry standard textures, finishes and lubricants that enables the system to be operated without the need for any on-site or pre-measurement calibration.

The accuracy of the technology has been extensively checked, tested and verified with the results closely correlating to conventional methods of measurement.

DetectorunitMIR

light source

Optic

Coil strip

Oil �lm


<..... continued from page 16


SHEET METAL

With three options available, the Amepa OFM technology comprises of a fully automatic in-line, real-time system that constantly measures and scans both sides of a coil simultaneously. A table mounted version for pre-cut blanks and sheets, and a handheld device that offers total portability and flexibility.

In the case of the fully automatic system, sensors can be mounted up to a distance of 120 mm away from the surface of the coil and capable of compensating for strip vibrations of up to 20 mm. Using a spot diameter of 15 mm and taking 15 measurements per second, the OFM quickly and efficiently measures the oil film thickness in a zigzag pattern as the sensors traverse back and forth across the width of the passing coil (see Fig. 3).

The software interface provides a total overview of both the oil film thickness and its distribution as well as allowing customer specific inputs such as coil number, surface texture, coil dimensions and the oil film thickness targets that forms part of the stored data.

Fig. 3 shows a typical set up of a twin headed system used to measure both sides of the coil, although each installation utilises customer specific arrangements.

“An in-line tool that instantly measures the lubrication thickness

to an accuracy of 0.1 g/m².

Fig. 4 shows the software interface detailing oil film distribution on both sides of the coil.

Divided into two sections (see Fig. 4), the right-hand side of the interface displays an overview of the complete coil surface in a colour graded spectrum, with red indicating lubricant in excess of the upper limit, green within the specified limits and blue denoting an oil film layer below the acceptable limit. An adjacent ‘traffic light’ indicator informs whether the strip is correctly oiled, needs further inspection or has been rejected.

When used with a twin headed system, both sides of the coil are displayed simultaneously.

The left-hand side of the interface displays the oil film thickness across the width of the coil set against the upper and lower pre-set limits, enabling a cross section view of the oil film distribution to be taken at any position in the coil length.

As the readings are instant, the results are conveyed and displayed to the control room operator in real time, with any out of tolerance readings triggering an audio/visual alarm so that immediate corrective action can be taken.

The table mounted version uses the selfsame oil film sensor head but also offers the provision to add an additional Amepa non-contact surface roughness sensor. This makes it possible to measure both the oil film thickness and surface roughness of a pre-cut blank or sheet at the same time, although in this instance only one side of the sheet can be measured at any one time.

“For the first time ever, it’s possible to measure the oil film thickness on both sides of the coil simultaneously.




SHEET METAL

Fig. 5 showing a table mounted configuration measuring both oil film thickness and surface roughness.

Utilising the same sensor technology as the in-line systems, the handheld device offers total portability and ease of use. Measurements are taken at the press of a button which are instantly displayed on the unit’s LCD in either g/m² or mg/ft².

The unit can store single readings or a whole series of measurements including their average to obtain a better indication of the overall lubrication distribution. All stored data with their respective coil numbers and timestamps is wirelessly transferable via Bluetooth to an application-specific tablet PC that can thereafter be fully integrated into the customer’s own database.

In the three-dimensional visualisation mode, it can be clearly seen in Fig. 6–8 how the oil film distribution varies and what action needs to be taken to provide a homogenous lubrication layer.

The benefits to be gained from oil film measurement are not just limited to the body in white stamping process alone, but major advantages can be achieved by the coil processing industries as well. Not only is the Amepa Oil Film Measurement (OFM) system an in-line inspection tool, but for the very first time it has now become possible to certify the oil film layer.

Additionally, significant savings can also be made by eliminating a complete oiling operation and supplying coils correctly coated with a high viscosity forming oil, rather than a low viscous anti-corrosion film.

For further details, contact Tim Lawrence of Amepa UK telephone +44 114 2577277 or e-mail [email protected].

Fig. 6 shows a dry strap running the length of the coil due to a blocked oiler nozzle.

Fig. 7 shows the oil has been excessively deposited on the left-hand side of the coil and under oiled on the right-hand side, indicating that the oiler isn’t horizontal to the strip.

Fig. 8 shows excessive oil deposits on the outer edges of the coil that has resulted in a trough of oil being formed. This is often seen when coils have been stored for an extended period of time.



SHEET METAL

Innovative forming solutions for the aerospace industry

With increasing environmental constraints on aircraft emissions, manufacturers are seeking ever more efficient designs that

reduce drag. A key technology in achieving reduced drag is a smooth flow of air over the aircraft skin. In laminar flow design the turbulence and, hence drag, is minimised through the optimisation of the aerodynamic surfaces. With the introduction of new energy efficient aircraft, the design of the engine cover or nacelle has become a prime focus for natural laminar flow technologies. As air flows over the nacelle, it first contacts the lipskin before continuing to flow along the outer surface. The lipskin is the highly polished leading edge on an aircraft engine nacelle. Any roughness or assembly gaps on the nacelle surfaces disturb the smooth flow of air, causing turbulence and increasing the drag. One such assembly gap is found where the lipskin joins the rest of the nacelle, currently close to the leading edge. By moving this joint further towards the rear of the nacelle it will be possible to delay the onset of turbulence and thus significantly reduce the drag of the nacelle assembly.Despite the extensive use of composite materials in modern aircraft structures, the high in-service temperatures and damage tolerance requirements found on the leading edge of the nacelle necessitates the use of metallic components. Traditionally these skins have been manufactured using deep drawing or spinning techniques. Such processes are limited in the overall depth of draw available and are fraught with quality control issues including excessive thinning, poor geometric conformance and grain growth resulting from multistage forming processes.The Advanced Metal Forming Research (AMFOR) Group, led by Dr Alan Leacock at the University of Ulster, has developed an innovative forming method for the production of natural laminar flow lipskins. With over 17 years’ experience in developing innovative forming solutions for the aerospace sheet metal forming sector, the AMFOR Group were able to rapidly develop the new process in minimal time. A core element of the AMFOR Group’s approach to solving this problem lay in the use of PAMSTAMP 2G FEA software from ESI.The new process is a combination of draw, redraw and stretching stages built into a single forming machine. The process, patented in over 30 countries (European Patent 2 328 698 B1), is specifically designed for the production of extended lipskin segments and is limited only by the size of blank material available. Through the support of the Invest NI Proof of Concept programme, the new process has been developed to Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) 4 by the manufacture of a prototype forming machine. The single hit prototype forming machine is capable of producing a lipskin part in five minutes to the tolerances required for laminar flow designs, without the need for inter-stage heat treatment.This is an exciting time to be engaged with the aerospace industry and sheet metals will continue to play an important role in future aircraft designs. Through the development of innovative sheet metal forming manufacturing methods the UK can stay at the forefront of the High Value Manufacturing opportunities the aerospace sector affords.

For further information please contact Dr Alan Leacock, Senior Lecturer

on 02890 366269 or email: [email protected].

• Modelled skin using PAMSTAMP 2G from ESI

• Prototype machine

• Manufactured part using the prototype machine


BUSINESS SUPPORT

W olverhampton based tax specialists R&D Tax Claims has helped a UK company involved in the detection of landmines successfully

reclaim over £125,000 in tax spent on research and development. The HMRC reclaim is R&D Tax Claims’ largest to date.

Mineseeker Operations Ltd, based at Wolverhampton Business Airport in South Staffordshire, has developed technology that detects surface and sub-surface landmines and unexploded ordnance. The two principal owners, chief executive officer Mike Kendrick and Mark Dorey, commercial director, were originally involved in a hot air balloon business based in Telford, West Midlands, which they went on to develop into a successful global aerial advertising business using airships to film major sporting events around the world. Mike Kendrick became interested in how aerial photographic imagery could be combined with ground penetrating radar for use in identifying where landmines were buried. Having taken an airship to Kosovo on a successful fact finding mission, Mineseeker was born. The system, which took several years to develop, enables the user to identify sub-surface objects, and can survey up to five square kilometres a day.“According to UN research statistics, there are one hundred million landmines buried in 70 countries and it will take over 600 years to clear them, at an estimated cost of $50bn”, says Mark Dorey. “Incredibly, these statistics don’t include Iraq, Afghanistan or Libya, and there are approximately two million more laid every year.” “Mineseeker are a great example of a company that have combined their entrepreneurial skills with in-depth knowledge of their specialism to create a business with a global reach in an area of great need”, said Mark Evans, managing director of R&D Tax Claims Ltd. “This was a slightly unusual claim for us as Mineseeker has one product, whereas most companies

have several. The difficulty lay in identifying the costs we could claim with HMRC, but we were very confident from the outset that Mineseeker had clearly carried out research and development.“Mineseeker are still in the start-up phase with low sales and high costs, so we needed to ensure that their costs were clearly identified to HMRC, as they are very specific about what R&D costs can be reclaimed and what can’t. We were forensic in our approach and the resulting claim of £125,854 over two years is our biggest to date. “It’s a joy to assist a company whose ethos is firmly both humanitarian and environmental – in excess of 80 per cent of land designated as mined is in fact clear, and this land can be brought back into use quickly for the good of both the community and the country.”Since 2009 Mark Evans has helped SME clients across the UK in the manufacturing, engineering and software sectors to reclaim more than £10 million by researching and identifying whether or not the company qualifies for an HMRC R&D tax credit. Earlier this year, he opened a Manchester base to cope with R&D tax credit enquiries across the North West industrial regions.To date, Mark has netted 120 SME clients an average tax refund of £83,000. Clients include specialist gears manufacturer Mini Gears of Stockport (£96,400); condition monitoring company PCMS of Newcastle under Lyme (£33,500) and fabrications manufacturer Strongs Plastics Products of Tamworth (£30,000). “I was surprised but delighted that we could reclaim that amount of corporation tax”, said Mineseeker’s Mark Dorey. “We’d never heard of the scheme before. It’s great news from a cashflow point of view as we are continually reinvesting into the business and we will continue to reclaim through the scheme. 2013 is looking very good indeed.”

Huge R&D tax reclaim for Wolverhampton Landmine Company

• Left to right: Mark Evans, managing director, R&D Tax Claims Ltd;

Mark Dorey, commercial director, Mineseeker Operations Ltd;

Mike Kendrick, chief executive officer, Mineseeker Operations Ltd.


BUSINESS SUPPORT

Access to FinanceThere is a range of Government Support for Finance

Just as businesses have different finance needs, there are a range of different Government support products for businesses, from grants to loans for start ups to tax breaks for angel investors.You can find information on all Government schemes, and a tool to help identify the most relevant ones, atgov.uk/business-finance-support-finder

Credit ScoringMany businesses aren’t aware that when applying for finance, lenders will check the credit scores of the business - and its directors.Your credit score can be affected by a range of things, including:

• Unpaid bills (yours or others at your addresses)• Whether you’re on the electoral roll• Paying suppliers promptly• Past searches for credit (including getting quotes

for finance or utility contracts)If you’ve been surprised to be declined finance it may be worth asking credit reference agency for your score - visit bipa.uk.com to find out more

Looking elsewhere for Debt Finance? There are many banks providing business finance in the UK, and dozens more organisations providing finance, from peer-to-peer lenders to asset based financiers.Each lender’s regional reach and appetite across sectors differs - so it may well be that whilst one lender can’t help you - another might.The Government and BBA has worked with an array of finance providers to produce a useful directory to help you find alternative finance providers:businessfinanceforyou.co.uk

Alternatives to banksBanks are but one source of finance for companies. Equity (where people or businesses provide money in return for shares in the business) helps put your businesses on a sounder footing to access finance and there are generous tax breaks from Government for investors looking to invest in equity.There are also Community Development Finance Institutions, peer-to-peer lenders, asset financiers, invoice finance and more that can be accessed through businessfinanceforyou.co.uk and you can find out more atgov.uk/business-finance-explained

When things go wrongUnfortunately, Ministers or Government officials cannot intervene in disputes with banks. Whilst we do take seriously every issue raised in correspondence, the Department cannot take the place of banks’ own complaints processes or the courts. You may also be eligible to contact the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Many businesses tell us that it can be a challenge to identify the right finance.Lending conditions have changed: lenders are looking for more financial information than they once were about the businesses they lend to and their ability to repay.The Government is working with the private sector to unlock finance. Although only 33% businesses applying for finance are confident of success, 71% of applications are successful.This information aims to provide answers to the most common questions and highlight sources of help available when raising finance.Different businesses have different finance needs - and not all of this information may be relevant to your own circumstance, but we hope that it will be of use to you or a business you know.For more information, please visit us at http://gov.uk, or search the web for “Business in You”

Getting Support and GuidanceBusiness mentors have the practical experience, contacts and expertise to help you make the right choices for your business.Mentorsme.co.uk (the national mentoring portal which is funded and operated by the BBA) can connect you with mentoring organisations across the UK. If you are a business that needs support or a business professional who can offer support, it can help you connect with each other.

How to identify professional accountancy adviceThe Business Finance Advice Scheme enables businesses to identify qualified accountants who can provide expert independent advice on how to access finance, such as bank loans or outside investment. These practices bear the Business Finance Advisor kitemark.You can find a Business Finance Adviser via the ICAEW, ACCA, ICAS websites:http://www.icaew.com/bfascheme http://uk.accaglobal.com/ http://icas.org.uk/

Declined by a bank? You can appealThe major banks in the UK and Northern Ireland (Barclays, HSBC, RBS (inc Natwest), Lloyds (including Halifax/Bank of Scotland) and Santander (plus NI banks) have agreed that if your loan application is declined you have the right to appeal, as part of the BBA Better Business Finance Programme (betterbusinessfinance.co.uk).When an appeal is raised, the decision will be reviewed by a second person from within the bank who was not involved in the original decision.The banks will consider all the information originally provided and ask for more where they think it is necessary.

http://tinyurl.com/BarclaysAppeals http://tinyurl.com/RBSAppealshttp://tinyurl.com/SantanderAppeals http://tinyurl.com/LloydsAppealshttp://tinyurl.com/HSBCAppeals

The whole process is monitored and scrutinised by an independent team to ensure the banks are implementing a fair, prompt and transparent appeals process.In the first year of the programme, an appeal led to a change in decision in 4 out of ten cases as a result of The process.

How do I appeal?If you have been declined finance your bank should have given you instructions on how to appeal with your decline. You will need to instigate an



BUSINESS SUPPORT


appeal if you feel you have been declined unfairly. In most cases it can be started with a phone call to your bank, and there isn’t a charge.An appeal can be made after any formal request for lending has been declined – this means any application that has gone through a credit assessment, after the bank has received the information from you to make a decision.The bank should explain to you why your application has not been successful, and work with you to reshape the request if possible and give guidance on alternative sources of finance if appropriate. The banks and the BBA are making this as easy as possible.

Where is there more information?Contact your bank for information on appealing.Alternatively, the participating banks (see Delined by a bank? You can appeal) and the BBA launched the website http://www.betterbusinessfinance.co.uk to provide more information on the appeals process and lending in general.

Accessing the Finance you needYou can explore the full range of publicly backed sources of finance from Government grants through to investment types of finance available from Business Angels and Venture Capitalists by visiting www.gov.uk/business-finance-support-finderDetails of a wide range of private sector lenders, searchable by location and firm type can be found at www.businessfinanceforyou.co.uk/The BIS guide SME access to finance schemes: measures to support small and medium-sized enterprise growth provides details of the main forms of public support available to businesses and can be found at: www.gov.uk/bis/financeguideThe Business Finance Advice Scheme gives businesses access to a wide choice of independent, professionally qualified advisers across the UK on a range of business finance options. Further information can be found at www.icaew.comThe Business Debtline provides confidential and independent advice on managing financial difficulties. Telephone 0800 197 6026 or log on to www.bdl.org.ukHM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC) Business Payment Support Service (www.hmrc.gov.uk/payinghmrc/problems/bpps.htm) helps busi-nesses and individuals who are experiencing difficulties in paying tax due in full and on time.

Business SupportThe Government wants to make it easier to start, invest in and grow a busi-ness. So we are helping support businesses, particularly, Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) in a number of ways.The following information gives details of the various Government initiatives helping small businesses and provides useful links to other business sup-port available.

Business Support and Guidance to help you start and grow your businessAdvice to help and grow your business can be found at www.gov.uk. This is the new home for Government services and information online; making it simpler, clearer and faster to find what you need from Government.For those without internet access, contact the Business Link helpline on 0845 6009006.The Business in You campaign encourages people to start a business, employ more staff, or start exporting. Further information can be found at: www.businessinyou.bis.gov.uk/Find a business mentor at www.mentorsme.co.uk to help you develop your ideas and grow your business. There are over 115 mentoring organisations on the portal, funded and operated by the British Banker’s Association, providing access to 27,000 business mentors.GrowthAccelerator is a new England-wide programme to help small businesses with potential for rapid and sustainable growth achieve their ambition; providing professional business advice and coaching. Join the businesses already benefitting at www.growthaccelerator.comThe New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) helps unemployed people to start their own business with access to business mentoring and financial support. Further information is available at www.gov.uk/moving-from-benefits-to-work/starting-your-own-businessStart-Up Loans are available for 18-30 year olds interested in starting a business but lacking access to the necessary finance or support to realise their ambitions. Further information can be found at: www.startuploans.co.uk/Businesses of all sizes are using apprenticeships to help recruit and develop the people they need - with the Government funding all or much of the costs of training, plus incentive payments for small and medium firms who take on new young apprentices. For further information contact www.apprenticeships.org.uk

ExportingUK Trade and Industry’s (UKTI) trade development product, Helping Your Business Grow Internationally, is available to UK companies of all sizes. For further information contact: www.ukti.gov.uk/export/howwehelp/item/213720.html UK Export Finance supports export contracts. Ask your bank for further information or visit www.ukexportfinance.gov.uk

Business Support OrganisationsThe National Enterprise Network is an umbrella organisation for business support organisations committed to the support and development of enterprise - www.nationalenterprisenetwork.org/“StartUp Britain” is a business-led initiative to help businesses start up and grow - www.startupbritain.org/The Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) works for manufacturers and through experienced advisors. Further information, including local contact points, can be found at: www.mymas.org or by speak to an adviser on 0845 658 9600.The Technology Strategy Board helps SMEs develop new products and services and access technology - www.innovateuk.org


BUSINESS SUPPORT

I have been asked to develop and manage an internal health and safety audit programme for my organisation. Could you outline the factors I need to consider to ensure the audit programme is effectively managed?

The Health and Safety Executive defines auditing as “the structured process of collecting independent information on the efficiency, effectiveness and reliability of the total health and safety management system and drawing up plans for corrective action”.

A comprehensive picture of how effectively the health and safety management system is controlling risks will emerge from a well-structured auditing programme.

Failure to develop and manage an effective audit programme could therefore result in inappropriate and/or inadequate information being collated and disseminated, giving a false indication of performance.

BS EN ISO 19011:2011 Guidelines for Auditing Management Systems, states that “the audit programme should include information and resources necessary to organise and conduct its audits effectively and efficiently within the specified time frames”.

The first stage is for top management to determine the objectives of the audit programme. These can be based on many factors, not least management priorities and findings from previous audits. With internal resources being finite, a risk-based audit programme can be developed.

When establishing the audit programme, the key is to determine roles and responsibilities, along with audit extent, procedures and resources. The procedural elements may include the audit schedule, reporting procedures and selection of appropriate auditors. As well as personnel, resource issues will be dictated by the extent of the audit programme but adequate budgeting will have to be taken into consideration.

In respect of the personnel, competence is essential. BS EN ISO 19011 states that “knowledge and skills related to the discipline and the application of discipline-specific methods, techniques, processes and practices should be sufficient to enable the auditor to examine the management system and generate appropriate audit findings and conclusions”.

Essential to the audit programme is selection of the most appropriate audit methodology. In general terms, these can be divided into “human interaction” such as interviews and questionnaires and “non-human interaction” including document reviews and observations.

Monitoring and review of the audit process are important manage-ment activities. These will include an evaluation of conformity with the programme’s objectives and the auditor’s own performance lev-els. Lessons learned from the audit programme review should be used for the programme’s continual improvement.

My organisation delivers a range of health and safety courses in-house as part of employee induction and continuing professional development. How can we ensure that the courses have been successful and decide when refresher training are required?

The provision of information, instruction and training in health and safety is a legal requirement, but also makes good business sense. The Health and Safety Executive states that “training helps people acquire the skills, knowledge and attitudes to make them competent in the health and safety aspects of their work”.

The purpose of any learning and development opportunity is for those attending to assimilate the information provided so as to improve or affirm their knowledge and understanding of the course’s subject matter.

As the Institution of Occupational Health and Safety (IOSH) notes, the most important outcome of any health and safety course is for the achieved learning to be “transferred and applied to the workplace”.

As such, the success of any course must be assessed. This will enable the course facilitator to determine whether those attending have attained skills or knowledge to the required level.

There are many ways to assess the training both during the course (formative assessment) and at the end of the course (summative assessment). Methods can include completion of formal indicators such as multiple-choice questions, tests or assignments. Informal methods may include self-assessment, worksheets or group discus-sions. The important factor is that the assessment method suits the delegates’ and course needs.

Assessment of learning outcomes can also be undertaken in the workplace following the training courses. Course evaluation forms completed by those attending may highlight any areas that those attending feel need to be reviewed or changed so as to improve outcomes.

IOSH suggests that, in order to assess how successful training has been, “managers can agree objectives with staff before they begin a course” and that “at a suitable point after the course, staff and managers can then evaluate how far the training has helped to meet the objectives”.

Knowledge gained through training can decay for a number of reasons, eg introduction of new procedures. As such, refresher training may be required periodically.

IOSH suggests that staff appraisal can be used as a way to “review their staff’s key competences, identify any gaps, and plan activities to renew or add to them”. Reactive data from accidents and near misses may also identify training needs. Finally, employees should be encouraged to raise concerns with their managers if they feel that they require additional or refresher training.

Developing an internal health and safety audit programme

Assessing the effectiveness of in-house training


BUSINESS SUPPORT

Business Support Guide

Innovation Networks (ERDF) offers grants of £10,000 to West Midlands SMEs that are collaborating with other regional SMEs on the development of a new product, process or service.www.innovation-networks.co.ukemail innovation@cad.

Electric and Intelligent vehicles (ERDF) offers grants of up to £30,000 for West Midlands SMEs to access expertise electric vehicle technologies or intelligent vehicle systems to help them with an innovative product development or to diversify into a new market.email [email protected] or call 024 7623 6245 / 07557 425498.

Enterprise Europe Network Midlands supports Midlands businesses to be more competitive and innovative in Europe. The team of experienced specialists provide a range of free services to help you: develop your business in new markets; source or license new technologies and access EU finance and EU funding.email [email protected] or call 024 7623 6236.

Eco Business (ERDF) offers grant support of up to £2,400 to help regional SMEs to cut costs, reduce waste and find new opportnities for growth. It can help those looking for initial compliance with environmental issues through to increasing the competitive advantage of your business. In addition to the grant, part funding towards consultancy work can also be provided.email [email protected] or call 024 7615 8206.

Metrology for the West Midlands (ERDF) helps SME busi-nesses to access grant funded expertise to use applied metrol-ogy to improve their resource efficiency. Grants up to £10,000 are available to SMEs that are looking to improve their business processes and improve their resource efficiency. email [email protected] or call 024 7623 6326.

The Technology Innovation Futures West Mid-lands project helps qualifying SMEs in the West Midlands to examine existing technologies, investigate new solutions and implement change. The project can fund 50% of up to ten days consultancy and also offers free workshops and networking opportunities for SMEs looking to improve their knowledge of emerging technology.www.tifwm.co.uk, email [email protected] or call 024 7615 8293.

Touch Digital provides fully-funded support for eligible West Midlands SMEs to access up to 5 days technical expertise to enable them to explore and integrate interactive technologies. Touch Digital can help companies whether they want to learn about digital media, create new products or services or evaluate existing ones. email [email protected] or call 024 7615 8207.

West Midlands (SME) InternationalisationProject (ERDF) offers grants of £1,000 or £2,500 for an eligible West Midlands SME to carry out international activities plus advice and information on overseas priority market opportunities.www.wmbusinessexport.co.ukemail [email protected] or call 024 7623 6406.

Funding for innovation: Smart – Round 2

Round 2, FY 2013-14

Smart is a grant scheme which offers funding to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to engage in R&D projects in the strategically important

areas of science, engineering and technology, from which successful new products, processes and services could emerge.The scheme supports SMEs carrying out R&D which offers potentially significant rewards and that could stimulate UK economic growth.Three types of grant are available:

• Proof of market • Proof of concept • Development of prototype.Any UK SME undertaking research and development may apply; applications are accepted on a rolling basis for assessment by independent experts.The new batch assessment dates for Smart scheme applications during the financial year 2013/14, which starts on 21st March, are:2013 close dates: 23 May, 18 July, 26 September, 21 NovemberFor further information please visit: www.innovateuk.org/competition-display-pageTo apply or find out more: e: [email protected]. t: 0300 321 4357


INSURANCE

Credit Insurance: Helping you to do businessFor CBM members, getting credit from your suppliers can be es-sential, but giving it to customers is risky. Today, the use of credit is almost universal. As a consequence of this, cash flow has become a key measure for almost all businesses. Are you happy that everything is being done that can be to lessen this risk to your business? Alternatively, is there anything else you can do to help improve the cash flow needs of your business?Has your business considered Credit Insurance?Credit Insurance can provide peace of mind, and support good credit man-agement disciplines. After all, the faster you collect your money, the better your cash flow. It can also provide financiers with the security and comfort they need to establish funding lines. That’s why Towergate can offer a Credit Insurance policy

Common policy options include:• UK or Export customers separately• A single strategic customer only• Top up cover to complement your existing credit insurance policy• The larger customers only• Your entire sales ledger

Surety BondingCBM member companies that import goods into the UK could take advan-tage of surety bonding. This is an insurance based guarantee that can re-place the more traditional bank guarantee or cash collateral. This can include performance/retention bonds, Duty and VAT deferment, and travel bonds. By placing your bonding requirement in the insurance or surety market - on an unsecured basis - this may free up bank capacity for other purposes.

Why not give your business a Credit health check?For your free credit risk assessment, call Towergate Insurance today on 0844 346 0905, or e-mail [email protected]


A.M.C. UK Fasteners Ltd (: 01536 271 920 Northamptonshire NN17 5XZ www.amcukfasteners.co.uk

Alcoa Fastening Systems (: 01952 290 011 Shropshire TF3 3BQ www.alcoa.com

Alcoa Fastening Systems (: 01527 525 719 Worcestershire B98 7TD www.mckechnieaerospace.com

Avdel UK Ltd (: 01925 856 526 Cheshire WA1 4RF www.acument.com

Barton Cold-Form (UK) Ltd (: 01905 772 021 Worcestershire WR9 0LP www.coldform.it

Brooks Forgings Ltd (: 01384 563 356 West Midlands B64 5QJ www.brooksforgings.co.uk

Caparo Atlas Fastenings Ltd (: 0121 224 2000 West Midlands WS10 8XL www.caparoatlasfastenings.com

Cirteq Ltd (: 01535 633 333 West Yorkshire BD20 8QP www.cirteq.com

Clyde Fasteners Ltd (: 01355 225 451 Lanarkshire G74 5ET www.clydefasteners.com

Cooper & Turner Ltd (: 01142 560 057 Yorkshire S9 1RS www.cooperandturner.com

DSL Ltd (Stride Supplies Ltd Div.) West Midlands WV14 2JS www.designcrews.com

Griff Chains Ltd (: 01384 569 415 West Midlands DY2 0ED www.griffchains.co.uk

Henrob Ltd (: 01244 837 220 Flintshire CH5 2NX www.henrob.com

Leggett & Platt Components Europe Ltd (: 01282 811 232 Lancashire BB18 6JA www.leggetteurope.com

PSM International Limited (: 01646 623 569 Pembrokeshire SA71 4RE www.psminternational.com

RCF Bolt + Nut Ltd (: 0121 522 2353 West Midlands DY4 8RF www.rcfboltnut.co.uk

Smith Bullough (: 01942 520 250 Lancashire WN2 4HD www.smithbullough.com

SPS Technologies (T.J. Brooks Div.) (: 0116 276 8261 Leicestershire LE4 9HX www.spstech.com

FASTENERS

Abbey Forged Products Ltd (: 0114 231 2271 Yorkshire S6 1ND www.theabbeygroupuk.com

AKS Precision Ball Europe Ltd (: 0191 587 0000 Co Durham SR8 2PP www.aksball.com

Bedford Steels (: 01142 769 643 Yorkshire S4 7YS www.bedfordsteels.co.uk

Bifrangi UK Ltd (: 01522 585 800 Lincolnshire LN2 5DT

Brockhouse Group Ltd (: 0121 556 1241 West Midlands B70 0SN www.brockhouse.co.uk

Caparo Forging: Europe (: 01384 252 587 West Midlands DY2 0LA www.caparo.com

Cascade (UK) Ltd (: 0161 438 4021 Greater Manchester M11 2DD www.cascorp.com

Cerro EMS (: 0121 772 6515 West Midlands B9 4DS www.cerro-ems.com

Chapmans Agricultural Ltd (: 0114 285 6000 Yorkshire S6 2FH www.chapmans-uk.com

Cramlington Precision Forge Ltd (: 01670 716 811 Northumberland NE23 1WA www.cpfl-tvs.com

Crosby Premier Stampings Ltd (: 01384 353 100 West Midlands B64 6AJ www.premierstampings.co.uk

Doncasters Blaenavon Ltd (: 01495 790 345 Gwent, Wales NP4 9XG www.doncasters.com

Doncasters Precision Forgings Ltd (: 0114 285 8100 Yorkshire S6 2FR www.doncasters.com

Firth Rixson - River Don (: 0114 219 3694 Yorkshire S9 2LD www.firthrixson.com

Firth Rixson Forgings Ltd (: 0114 219 3740 Yorkshire S9 1HD www.firthrixson.com

Firth Rixson Forgings Ltd (: 0114 219 3694 Derbyshire DE4 2JB www.firthrixson.com

Firth Rixson Ltd (: 0114 219 3000 Yorkshire S9 1JD www.firthrixson.com

FORGING

Gesipa Blind Riveting Systems LtdWest Yorkshire BD21 4JU

• Special designed blind rivets• Rivet nut and rivet nut studs • Tooling with process control (fully automatic or manual)

: 01535 212 200 E: [email protected]

www.gesipa.co.uk

Brooks Forgings LtdWest Midlands B64 5QJ

Brooks Forgings Ltd, established in 1960, are one of the UK’s leadingmanufacturers of Forged and Machined components. With our extensive in housemanufacturing capabilities we are able to produce standards and specials to suitcustomer specific requirements.

: 01384 563 356F: 01384 563 357

E: [email protected]

SHEET METAL


MANUFACTURER MEMBERS

Tinsley Bridge Ltd (: 0114 2211 111 Yorkshire S9 2DZ www.tinsleybridge.co.uk

TSL Turton Ltd (: 0114 273 0966 Yorkshire S4 7YP www.tslturton.com

VTL Precision (Huddersfield) Limited (: 01484 478 700 West Yorkshire HX2 6EL www.vtl-automotive.com

W. H. Tildesley Ltd (: 01902 366 440 West Midlands WV13 2AN www.whtildesley.com

Wyman Gordon Lincoln Ltd (: 01522 525 492 Lincolnshire LN2 5XY www.wyman-gordon.com

Wyman Gordon Ltd (: 01506 446 200 West Lothian, Scotland EH54 5BZ www.wyman-gordon.com

Yorkshire Fittings Ltd (: 0113 270 1104 Yorkshire LS10 1RT www.pegleryorkshire.co.uk

Firth Rixson Metals (: 0114 219 3740 Yorkshire S35 9XH www.firthrixson.com

George Dyke Ltd (: 0121 526 7138 West Midlands WS10 8LP www.george-dyke.co.uk

Henry Williams Ltd (: 01325 462 722 Co. Durham DL1 2NJ www.hwilliams.co.uk

Hull Forgings Ltd (: 01482 323 089 Yorkshire HU9 1LL www.wp-forging.co.uk

Independent Forgings & Alloys Ltd (: 0114 234 3000 Yorkshire S6 2BL www.forgedinsheffield.com

Integriti (: 0191 263 8686 Yorkshire S63 6BJ www.integriti.co.uk

Kimber Drop Forgings Ltd (: 01384 414 500 West Midlands B64 5QZ www.kimberdropforgings.co.uk

Koyo Bearings (Europe) Ltd (: 01226 733 200 Yorkshire S75 3TA

Mettis Aerospace Ltd (: 01527 406 400 Worcestershire B97 6EF www.mettis-aerospace.com

Mills Forgings Ltd (: 024 7622 4985 Warwickshire CV1 2BJ www.millsforgings.co.uk

MSI-Forging Division (: 01302 366 961 Yorkshire DN4 8DH www.msi-forge.com

Padley & Venables Ltd (: 01246 299 100 Yorkshire S18 2XT www.padley-venables.com

Pandrol UK Ltd (: 01909 476 101 Nottinghamshire S81 7AX www.pandroluk.com

Rollins Bulldog Tools (: 01942 244 281 Lancashire WN1 3DD www.bulldogtools.co.uk

Schaeffler (UK) Ltd (: 01554 747 748 Carmarthenshire S14 9TG www.schaeffler.co.uk

Shakespeare Forgings Ltd (: 01384 632 420 West Midlands B64 7RB www.shakespeareforgings.com

Sheffield Quality Forge (: 0114 2560 914 Yorkshire S9 3XL www.specialforgedproducts.com

Smethwick Drop Forge Kidderminster (: 01562 823 451 Worcestershire DY11 7QE www.sdf-auto.co.uk

Smith Bullough (: 01942 520 250 Lancashire WN2 4HD www.smithbullough.com

Solid Stampings Ltd (: 01384 636 421 West Midlands B64 7BL www.solidswivel.co.uk

Somers Forge Ltd (: 0121 585 5959 West Midlands B62 8DZ www.somersforge.com

South Wales Forgemasters (: 029 2081 0341 Wales CF15 7YF www.swforgemasters.co.uk

Spromak Ltd (: 0151 480 0592 Merseyside L36 6AN www.spromak.co.uk

Stokes Group Ltd (: 01384 342 550 West Midlands DY2 0SE www.stokesforgings.com

Symmetry Medical Inc (: 0114 285 5881 Yorkshire S6 2AN www.symmetrymedical.com

ThyssenKrupp Woodhead Ltd (: 01132 441 202 Yorkshire LS4 2AQ www.thyssenkrupp.com

3M Healthcare (: 01200 421 140 Lancashire BB7 1NX www.3M.com/uk

AGA Rangemaster Ltd (: 01926 457 400 Warwickshire CV31 2AD www.rangemaster.co.uk

Aisin Europe Manufacturing (UK) Ltd` (: 0121 421 5688 West Midlands B32 3BZ www.aisin.com

ArcelorMittal Tailored Blanks Birmingham Ltd (: 0121 558 8464 West Midlands B66 2BA www.arcelormittal.com

Ash + Lacy Perforators Ltd (: 0121 558 8921 West Midlands B66 2RP www.ashlacyperf.co.uk

Berck Ltd (: 0121 553 2726 West Midlands B70 7DP www.bercklimited.co.uk

Bird Stevens & Co Ltd (: 01384 567 381 West Midlands DY5 2JE www.birdstevens.co.uk

Calsonic Kansei (: 0191 417 0084 Tyne & Wear NE37 3JD www.ckeurope.com

Carlton Laser Services Ltd (: 0116 233 9990 Leicestershire LE4 9LN www.carltonlaser.co.uk

Charter Automotive (: 01543 414 541 Staffordshire WS7 3GJ www.charterautomotive.com

Cooper B-Line (: 01278 783 371 Somerset TA9 4AQ www.cooperbline.co.uk

Cooper Crouse-Hinds (UK) Ltd (: 01795 889 146 Kent ME12 1LP www.enclosures-crouse-hinds.uk.com

Cooper Lighting and Safety (: 01302 321 541 South Yorkshire DN2 4NB www.cooperindustries.com

Covpress Holdings (: 024 7669 1000 Warwickshire CV5 6RT www.covpress.com

Doncasters Bramah (: 0114 251 2102 Yorkshire S20 3GB www.doncasters.com

DPE Automotive (: 01325 300 777 Co Durham DL16 6UJ www.sertec.co.uk

DRB Engineering Ltd (: 0121 359 4566 West Midlands B19 3TE www.drbengineering.com

Eden (Glamorgan - Marmon Group Ltd Div.) (: 08707 259 656 Glamorgan CF44 9YN www.eden-industries.co.uk

Eden (Suffolk - Marmon Group Ltd Div.) (: 08707 259 656 Suffolk IP28 7AR www.eden-industries.co.uk


MANUFACTURER MEMBERS

COLD ROLLED

Aisin Europe Manufacturing (UK) Ltd (: 0121 421 5688 West Midlands B32 3BZ www.aisin.com

Hadley Industries Plc (: 0121 555 1300 West Midlands B66 2PA www.hadleygroup.co.uk

Metsec Plc (: 0121 601 6000 West Midlands B69 4HE www.metsec.com

Stewart Fraser Ltd (: 01233 625 911 Kent TN24 8DR www.stewartfraser.com

Eu-Matic Div. of Multimatic Ltd (: 024 7667 3333 Warwickshire CV5 6UB www.multimatic.com

Fellows (Rical Group Div.) (: 01902 576 400 West Midlands WV2 4HL Futaba-Tenneco UK Ltd (: 01282 433 171 Lancashire BB12 6HJ Genex UK Ltd (: 01922 710 050 West Midlands WS2 7NA www.genexuk.co.uk

Gestamp Tallent Limited (: 01554 772 233 Carmarthenshire SA14 8EU www.thyssenkrupp.com

Gestamp Tallent Limited (: 01543 466 664 West Mdilands WS11 1LY www.gestamp.com

Gestamp Tallent Limited (: 01325 313 232 County Durham DL5 6EP www.gestamp.com

Gestamp Tallent Limited (: 01554 772 233 Carmarthenshire SA14 8EU www.thyssenkrupp.com

Glen Dimplex Home Appliances (: 08442 484 466 Merseyside L35 2XW www.gdha.com

Grorud Group Ltd (: 01207 590 471 County Durham DH8 8JA www.grorud.com

Grove Metal Sections Ltd (: 01902 601 697 West Midlands WV13 3RN www.grovems.com

G-TEKT Europe Manufacturing Ltd (: 01452 610 022 / 01452 632 129 Gloucestershire GL3 4AJ www.takao.co.uk

Guala Closures UK (: 0141 777 2000 Lanarkshire, Scotland G66 1ST H V Wooding Ltd (: 01303 264 471 Kent CT21 6HG www.hvwooding.co.uk

Hadley Industries Plc (: 0121 555 1300 West Midlands B66 2PA www.hadleygroup.co.uk

JCS Hi-Torque Ltd (: 01787 376 212 Suffolk CO10 2YH www.jcshi-torque.co.uk

Kiyokuni Europe Ltd (: 01952 292 920 Shropshire TF2 9TY www.kiyokuni.co.uk

KMF (Precision Sheet Metal) (: 01782 569 060 Staffordshire ST5 7UF www.kmf.com

Laser Process Ltd (: 01543 495 000 Staffordshire WS12 2GI www.laserprocess.co.uk

Leonardt Ltd (: 01746 861 203 Shropshire WV16 6NN www.leonardt.com

Metsec Plc (: 0121 601 6000 West Midlands B69 4HE www.metsec.com

Miking Ltd (: 0191 415 5919 Tyne & Wear NE37 3JD www.mi-king.co.uk

Milton Keynes Pressings Ltd (: 01908 271 940 Buckinghamshire MK2 3EF www.mkp.co.uk

Mitchell Grieve (Rical Group Div.) (: 0116 235 0512 Leicestershire LE4 0HZ www.mitchell-grieve.co.uk

Northern Automotive Systems Ltd (: 01873 832 263 Wales NP7 0EB Portola Packaging Ltd (: 01302 552 400 Yorkshire DN4 5NT www.portola-europe.com

Presspart Manufacturing Ltd (: 01254 584 126 Lancashire BB1 5RF www.presspart.com

Rical Group (: 01384 569 283 West Midlands B64 7AL www.ricalltd.com

Rical Group (: 0121 555 4807 West Midlands B66 1NY www.ricalltd.com

Rittal-CSM Ltd (: 01752 207 600 Devon PL6 7EZ www.rittal-csm.co.uk

RSM Industries Ltd (: 024 7636 2082 West Midlands CV7 9NN www.rsmindustries.co.uk

Sankey Laminations Ltd T/A Kienle + Spiess (: 01902 693 000 West Midlands WV14 9NE www.kienle-spiess.com

SAS International (: 01656 664 600 Glamorgan CF31 3XU www.sasint.co.uk

Sertec Ltd (: 01675 463 361 West Midlands B46 1JU www.sertec.co.uk

Sertec Tube and Pressings (: 0121 706 0330 West Midlands B11 2BF www.sertec.co.uk

SPS Aerostructures Ltd (: 0115 988 0000 Nottinghamshire NG15 0DP www.spstech.com

Stadco Castle Bromwich (: 0121 382 3120 West Midlands B24 9GZ www.stadco.co.uk

Stadco Powys (: 01691 648 561 Powys, Wales SY22 5DH www.stadco.co.uk

Stadco Shrewsbury (: 01743 445 541 Shropshire SY1 3AS www.stadco.co.uk

Steel Service Centre Ltd (: 01889 270 241 Staffordshire ST18 0PJ www.steelservicecentre.co.uk

Stockfield Metal Spinners Ltd (: 0121 440 1333 West Midlands B12 9DJ www.stockfield.com

Swann-Morton Ltd (: 0114 234 4231 Yorkshire S6 2BJ www.swann-morton.com

Tata Steel (: 01902 698 635 West Midlands WV11 3SR www.tatasteel.com

Taurus Engineering (Rical Group Div.) (: 01903 761 188 West Sussex BN15 8TA www.taurusengineering.co.uk

The Regent Engineering Co (Walsall) Ltd (: 0121 526 6060 West Midlands WS10 8XB www.regenteng.com

UYS Ltd (: 01865 334 300 Oxon OX4 2BW www.uys.ltd.uk

UYT Ltd (: 024 7667 1400 West Midlands CV5 6UF www.uyt.ltd.uk

Walsall Pressings Co Ltd (: 01922 721 152 West Midlands WS1 4JW www.walpres.co.uk

Whittan Storage (: 01952 682 251 Shropshire TF7 4LN www.whittan-storage.com

William King Ltd (: 0121 500 4121 West Midlands B70 9DR www.williamking.co.uk

William Mitchell (Rical Group Div.) (: 0121 558 2694 West Midlands B66 1NY www.william-mitchell.co.uk

X-met Fabrication & Finishing Ltd (: 01698 733 533 Lanarkshire ML1 5RX www.x-met.com

FASTENERS


SUPPLIER MEMBERS

Ajax Tocco International Ltd (: 0121 322 8000 West Midlands B8 1BG www.ajaxtocco.co.uk / ajaxtocco.com

Broder Metals Group Ltd (: 0114 243 1206 Yorkshire S9 3WL www.broder-metals-group.com

FNsteel Ltd (: 07785 230 632 West Midlands B91 1JF www.fnsteel.com

National Machinery UK Ltd (: 0121 585 9846 West Midlands B63 3HY www.nationalmachinery.eu

Tata Steel (: 01724 404 040 Lincolnshire DN16 1BP www.tatasteel.com

The Bifurcated & Tubular Rivet Company (: 01296 314 300 Buckinghamshire HP20 1DQ www.bifandtub.co.uk

FORGING

Ajax Tocco International Ltd (: 0121 322 8000 West Midlands B8 1BG www.ajaxtocco.co.uk/ajaxtocco.com

Barrett Nickel Alloys Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01709 386 690 South Yorkshire S60 1FB www.barrettnickelalloys.com

Barrett Steel Ltd (: 01709 789 201 South Yorkshire S65 1SU www.barrettsteel.co.uk

Barrett Steel Ltd (: 01274 474 372 West Yorkshire BD4 9HU www.barrettsteel.co.uk

Barrett Strip & Alloys Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01274 654 229 West Yorkshire BD4 9HU www.barrettstripandalloys.com

CMT Steel Services Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01384 565 166 West Midlands B64 7DD www.cmt-steel.co.uk

Dielife Limited (: 01642 221 133 North Yorkshire TS2 1JW www.dielife.com

Euromarch Ltd (: 01452 525 259 Gloucestershire GL2 5EU Fabreeka International Inc. (: 01274 531 333 West Yorkshire BD18 1QG www.fabreeka.com

Forge Tech Services (SA) Ltd (: 01922 612 192 West Midlands WS2 8NG www.forgetechservices.com

Fuchs Lubritech (UK) Ltd (: 020 8345 5566 London N18 3DB www.fuchs-lubritech.com

Henkel - Acheson ASM (: 07768 477 310 Worcestershire B61 8LG www.achesonindustries.com

Henkel Loctite Adhesives (: 01823 430 034 Somerset TA4 3UD www.henkel.com

HKB Steel Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 0121 601 5062 West Midlands B69 3HU www.hkb-steel.co.uk

Interpower Induction Europe (: 01675 477 700/07746 976 232 West Midlands B76 9EB www.interpowereurope.com

J Boyd Laurie & Son Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01274 474 335 West Yorkshire BD4 9HU www.boyd-laurie.co.uk

Kespar Engineering Ltd (: 01902 353 848 West Midlands WV14 7EG www.kespar.co.uk

Lasco UK Agent (: 01902 672 491 West Midlands DY3 3RF Locum Fine Steels Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01709 789 273 South Yorkshire S65 1SU www.locumfinesteels.com

Micas Simulations Ltd (: 01299 822 522 Worcestershire DY13 0WU www.micassimulations.co.uk

Pearson Panke Ltd (: 020 8959 3232 London NW7 3LR www.pearsonpanke.co.uk

Schmolz Bickenbach (: 0121 544 1923 West Midlands B69 2NY www.schmolz-bickenbach.com

SMS Mevac UK Ltd (: 01606 551 421 Cheshire CW7 3RS www.sms-mevac.co.uk

Staniforth-HKB Steel Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01709 789 227 South Yorkshire S65 1SU www.staniforth-hkb-steel.co.uk

Steel Supplies (Scotland) Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01674 674 009 Angus, Scotland DD10 9PA www.steelsuppliesltd.com

Tata Steel (: 01709 371 234 Yorkshire S60 1DW www.tatasteel.com

Taylorsteel (North East) Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01207 599 226 County Durham DH8 6HG www.taylor-steel-northeast.co.uk

Taylorsteel (North West) Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 0161 621 9848 Lancashire OL1 4AD www.taylor-steel-northwest.co.uk

Timet UK Ltd (: 0121 356 1155 West Midlands B6 7UR www.timet.com

Tubes (UK) Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 0121 601 5050 West Midlands B69 3HU www.tubes-uk-steel.co.uk

Woodberry Chillcott & Co Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (:0117 316 5410 Avon BS11 8AF www.woodberrychillcott.co.uk

Woodberry Chillcott & Co Ltd (Barrett Steel Div.) (: 01752 343 421 Devon PL7 5ET www.woodberrychillcott-plymouth.co.uk

SHEET METAL

Bauromat UK Ltd (: 01684 575 757 Worcestershire WR14 1GL www.bauromat.co.uk

Dayton Progress Ltd (: 01926 484 192 Warwickshire CV8 1NP www.daytonprogress.co.uk

Institute of Sheet Metal Engineering (: 0789 149 9146 West Midlands WV6 7UQ www.isme.org.uk

Oerlikon Balzers Coating Ltd (: 01908 377 277 Buckinghamshire MK7 8AT www.balzers.co.uk

Pearson Panke Ltd (: 020 8959 3232 London NW7 3LR www.pearsonpanke.co.uk

Professional Polishing Services Ltd (: 0121 555 6569 West Midlands B66 2DZ www.professionalpolishing.co.uk

QCI Group (: 01543 677 792 Staffordshire WS11 9SS www.qci-group.com

Refmet Ceramics Ltd (: 0114 257 7277 Yorkshire S35 2PH www.refmet.com

Technotrans Graphics Ltd (: 01206 224 200 Colchester CO4 9QX www.technotrans.co.uk

The Bifurcated & Tubular Rivet Company (: 01296 314 300 Buckinghamshire HP20 1DQ www.bifandtub.co.uk

TTI Group Ltd (: 0121 327 2020 West Midlands B6 7EE www.ttigroup.co.uk

Whiston Industries Ltd (: 01384 560 606 West Midlands B64 5JY www.whistonindustries.com

James Durrans and SonsYorkshire S36 9QU

• Suppliers of all types of forging lubricants• UK based manufacturing facilities and technical support• 10 day delivery time on most lubricants

Contact: Steven Sherry, Sales Manager : 01226 370 000www.durrans.co.uk


SUPPLIER MEMBERS

Advanced Forming Research Centre (: 0141 534 5200 Glasgow PA4 9LJ www.strath.ac.uk/afrc

Applied CAE Limited (: 01332 813 340 Leicestershire DE74 2NN www.appliedgroup.com

Imperial College London (: 0207 594 7082 London SW7 2AZ www.imperial.ac.uk

Lean Education and (: 01562 720 596 Development Group of Companies West Midlands DY6 0NW www.leadlimited.co.uk

Nicholas Associates Stafforce Personnel Div.) (: 0114 252 5730 Yorkshire S9 1XU www.nicholasassociates.co.uk

Pilz Automation Technology (: 01536 460 766 Northants NN18 8TJ www.pilz.co.uk

SEMTA (: 01923 238 441 Hertfordshire WD18 0JT www.semta.org.uk

Towergate Risk Solutions (: 0844 346 0582 West Midlands ST4 4F8 www.towergate.co.uk

Ajax Tocco International Ltd: 0121 322 8000

West Midlands, B8 1BG www.ajaxtocco.co.uk / ajaxtocco.com

Corus Construction & Industrial : 01724 404 040Lincolnshire, DN16 1BP

www.corusconstruction.comDorken MKS-Systeme GmbH & Co KG : 0121 745 8959West Midlands, B90 3JR

www.doerken.deHenkel Loctite Adhesives: 01629 824 171

Derbyshire, DE4 4FRwww.henkel.comIRIS Business Solutions [Chorus] : 01274 851 577

West Yorkshire, WF15 8HGwww.iris.co.ukJohnson Machine & Tool Co Ltd : 0121 568 8013

West Midlands, WS10 8BJwww.johnson-group.co.uk

COMMERCIAL SUPPLIERS

WG Safety & Environmental (: 01543 670 067 Staffordshire WS7 1AG www.wg-safety.co.uk

OVERSEAS

Bharat Forge Ltd (: 00 91 212 671 666 India

China Forging Industry Association (: 00 86 10 6846 5045 P.R. China

CPM (: 00 49 2407 95940 Germany

Ewald Dorken AG (: 00 49 2330 630 Germany www.doerken.de

Forging Industry Association (: 00 1 216 781 6260 USA

Japan Forging Industry Association (: 00 81 3 3241 7661 Japan 103

Lasco Umformtechnik GmbH (: 00 49 9561 6420 Germany www.lasco.com

Oberste-Beulmann GmbH & Co. KG (: 49 2191 93 60 32 Germany www.oberste-beulmann.de

Pietro Rimoldi & C SRL (: 00 39 0 331 504 449 Italy

Presstrade GmbH (: 01788 890 055 Northamptonshire NN11 7HS www.presstrade.com

R&D Tax Claims Ltd West Midlands WV9 5HD

• We are the R&D tax relief experts for manufacturing SMEs with a 100% success track record

• We work on a No Win No Fee basis and have achieved average client savings of over £80,000

• We will secure, speed through and maximise your refund from HMRC

: 01902 783 172Contact: Mark Evans FCA E: [email protected]: 07850 385 198 www.rdtaxclaims.co.uk

Spraying Systems LtdSurrey GU9 8QT

• Automatic application of lubricants and anti-corrrosion protectives.• High efficiency transfer, with up to 90% saving in materials.• Use on coils, blanks, pipe sections, wires, bars, stamping

and forming tools, forging dies etc.

: 01252 727 200Contact: Adam Mulvaney E: [email protected]: 07802 895 745 www.spray-uk.com

30 - thecbm.co.uk · eu fastener trade figures for 2012 ... essentially, may’s figures showed the...

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